Tuesday, December 10, 2013

22 Oct 2012 @ KuchingKolok Mee breakfast at Sin Lian Shin is a must if you're in Kuching. The shop is located at Jalan Green, Kuching.Wilson went work as we're left with our car to explore the rest of Kuching. First stop, Semenggoh Nature Reserve to take a peek at the Orangutans.

The Orangutans here live in their natural habitat and the people there will feed them with fruits every morning.

They're free to roam around the place and even get close to the visitors. But we're not allowed to touch them, only see them from afar.

It's interesting to see these gigantic apes swinging through the branches and doing stunts from tree to tree so effortlessly. And they are not shy to even pee in front of the visitors. Hahaha...

After seeing something so tame, we drove to the crocodile farm to watch the fearless animal in action.

At the entrance, there's a pond with lots of baby crocs.

We quickly wiggle our way to the main lake where the feeding time was about to start.The staff will hang a slab of meat on the hook and roll it to the the middle of the lake. And we wait....Not long after, you'll see the crocs jumping up from the water and "THUMP!" taking a huge bite on the meat. I never knew that crocodiles can jump out of the water to such height. It takes anything to get to the food I guess...

Around the farm were some animals too. Didn't post all of them but I particularly like this playful little Sun Bear all by himself.

We headed back to town before dark to catch a sampan ride over to the opposite bank to buy Kuih Lapis.

Sarawak is very famous for their colourful layer cake which comes with assorted flavours. The choices of cake flavours were so many that you can't even count with your fingers (and toes).

In the evening, we went to our hotel bar to redeem our free drink. At the same time, celebrated Cheryl and MengChew's birthdays. We bought 2 slices of cake as a surprise for them.

23 Oct 2012 @ KuchingThe last day of Kuching. We checked out of the hotel and walked along the streets.Found this little Chinese Museum and decided to see what's inside. There was a mini movie clip on how Chinese from Mainland China settled down in various parts of Malaysia.

Then we walked around the mini museum to see the origins of different dialects. There's even a voice clip for you to listen to the way they speak their dialect.

Out of curiosity, I pressed on the FooChow button and heck, I understand NOTHING! Hahaha...But I'm still proud to say that I'm a FooChow decendent, with no understanding of the dialect at all.

Other than that, there were some displays of Chinese schools, Chinese musical instruments and the common Chinese surnames.

A little down the road sits the oldest temple in Kuching - Tua Pek Kong Temple.

Although it's not a very big temple, but the architecture and carvings of the building was amazing. I always love to see beautiful structures.

While waiting for the time to board our flight, we went to a coffee shop for a drink to chill and relax. Some of them even went to buy kolok mee to bring home, seems like they really loved it.

For me, if I'd want to taste Kuching Kolok Mee again without having to travel that far, I'd go to Bangsar Lucky Garden for it. Taste wise is as good as the originals.All in all, had a great time with my buddies and I've visited all the states in Malaysia! Woo-Hoo!! Billy, out.

Tuesday, December 03, 2013

20 October 2012 @ KuchingBefore I begin writing, I shall apologize to my mates as I have lost all the photos in my camera due to my own carelessness - deleting the photos thinking that I have already backed them up into my hard disk. We lost most of the group shots but I'm glad we still have some remains in my friend's camera.Sarawak was the only state I have not been to until this trip to Kuching. Aside from my maiden trip to the cat city, it was also my first holiday with my secondary school buddies.

We touched down the airport and rented a Proton Saga for the whole stay in Kuching. First thing up, of course to pay a visit to the reputable Cat Statue in the heart of the city.

We walked around the town and trying to get ourselves familiarized with the roads so that we don't get lost driving around.

Right after checking into our hotel - Lime Tree Hotel, I made a call to Wilson to ask if he's free to meet up. And he suggested to have dinner at Top Spot Food Court.

Top Spot Food Courts seems like a Hot Spot Makan Place for the locals!

We made it there in just minutes and Wilson has already done ordering food for us. A+ Service as a tour guide. Hehe...

Some of the dishes were an eye-opener for me but all of them tasted heavenly-delicious.

Paku-pakis

Big humongous prawns

Kuching's version of Oh-Chien (Fried Oyster)

Ayam Pansuh - A local delicacy

Dinner was very satisfying. We took a stroll around town but there wasn't much to see or do after dark in Kuching. 21 October 2012 @ Cat Museum & Cultural VillageWilson agreed to take us around the next day and we started the day early by visiting the Cat Museum.

Inside the museum, you'll see everything and anything that can relate to a cat. You'll need to pay a fee if you'd like to bring along your camera.

Even the catwoman?!

Guess this is the only group shot I have

Me, Cheryl, Immanuel, Wilson, MengChew, JooLi

Next stop: Sarawak Cultural VillageOur student cards came in handy again, got a 75% off normal ticket price for students at only RM15!

We reached just in time for the cultural show to start. Got ourselves a nice cozy spot and enjoyed the performance.

It was a very colourful and vibrant performance, with each ethnic group showing off their very own costumes and dances.

Towards the end of the show, the men used a sumpit (blowpipe) to burst the balloons on stage. They even roped in a girl from the audience for the stunt.

After the show, we started walking around the village. Each ethnic group's traditional houses were built and visitors were allowed to go in.

Inside each house, there will be instruments, handicrafts, food and all sorts of stuff related to that tribe.

You can even purchase the products there and then if you really like them!

Halfway through the village, the rain started pouring heavily. We had no choice but to hide at the house we're at.While waiting for the rain to stop, one of the tribe members started playing on his instrument. The music being played was unique and I really enjoyed it.

The rain didn't stop for some time and we decided to head out to the car to get more umbrellas. Then, we moved on to the other parts of the village.

One of the new things I learnt at the village was that sago is not a fruit and it's not round in nature! Gosh, I feel so jakun...

The day ended with a lousy dinner and a walk at the night market in the rain.Quite a day with a lot of rain. Billy, out.